Mediation is much cheaper than the costs of going to court. If you pay privately for the mediation you will be charged an hourly rate for the mediation sessions - see the details in our Fees section for more specific information.

If you qualify for Legal Aid, mediation will be free of charge

Mediation generally takes between 4 – 8 weeks, depending on the issues you need to resolve. This is much quicker than going to court which can take many months. The mediation can be timed at your own pace, allowing more or less time between sessions depending on how you want to progress.

In Mediation, you control the outcome. The mediator acts as a neutral third party to facilitate and manage your discussions. The mediator will give you any information that may need to help you make informed decisions, but the decisions are up to you. You decide what are the best options for you and your family. This is very different to a court process where a decision is imposed upon you.

Often when people separate or divorce, they find it difficult to talk to one another. There may be a lot of conflict, and sometimes people may not have talked to one another for many months.

Mediation gives you the scope to work together to find solutions. The mediator helps you to look at ways of communicating more effectively, even when this may seem impossible.

Good communication and minimising conflict is particularly important where there are children involved.

In the mediation process, the Mediator is with you both in a controlled, confidential environment, which gives you an opportunity to be more creative about the possible solutions and to talk openly about how they might work. If you are in conflict over children, the Mediator will help and encourage you to take account of their wishes and feelings.

The Mediator will help you focus on the future and take a positive approach. All families are different and no one solution fits all. That's why in mediation we take the time to help you look at all of the options that are available and how they will work in practice for you. You can then make informed choices and decisions about your future and what is best for your family.

Generally, solutions reached in mediation last longer than orders imposed by the court.